UFC 213 Opening Betting Odds for Yoel Romero vs Robert Whittaker

With current UFC middleweight champ Michael Bisping on the mend nursing a knee injury, the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) has decided to have two of the top 185-pound contenders -- Yoel Romero and Robert Whittaker -- duke it out at UFC 213 in Las Vegas on July 8th for the interim middleweight title.

Romero is undefeated inside the Octagon, impressively going 8-0 with knockout victories over former champions Lyoto Machida and most recently Chris Weidman. He's also finished top contender Derek Brunson as well as earning a decision over Jacare Souza in that stretch. At 40 years old, his championship window is closing, but he still more than deserves this shot.

Whittaker is a former winner of The Ultimate Fighter, and he's currently riding a seven-fight winning streak, with six of those wins coming since moving up to the middleweight division. Most recently, he's knocked out Brunson and Souza to more than earn his opportunity at the crown.

The betting line was released by MMA oddsmaker Nick Kalikas moments ago via ESPN.

Here's what Kalikas had to say about the fight:

"With champion Michael Bisping injured, Yoel Romero will now face Robert Whittaker for the interim UFC middleweight title. Whittaker represents a much tougher challenge for Romero than Bisping due to his punching power and his success against talented grapplers in the division. Romero is still dangerous due to his Olympic caliber wrestling backed by explosive power on the feet, but Whittaker is the better striker overall. Neither fighter is overly durable, so this fight could come down to who lands the first big shot. I'm opening a competitive line with Romero coming in as a slight favorite.."

About the Author

Brian Hemminger has been involved in MMA since 2007, and is highly regarded for his well-researched and knowledgeable interviews. He has hosted The Verbal Submission MMA podcast for three years and was a staff writer at MMAmania.com from 2011 to 2013 with an extensive background in live coverage, fight previews and post-fight analysis.